Hezly Rivera didn’t become an Olympic gold medalist by obsessing over her sport before performing—she found the key to winning was not thinking about gymnastics at all.

While many athletes swear by elaborate pregame routines or superstitious rituals, Rivera’s secret is simpler: silence, and sometimes a nap.

“Before I perform, I don’t really have certain steps that I take,” Rivera, 17, tells Fortune. “When I’m getting ready, I like to stay as calm as possible. I don’t listen to music, I take a nap. I try to get my mind off gymnastics.”

The youngest athlete on the entire U.S. delegation at the 2024 Paris Olympics—she was 16 at the time—earned a gold medal as a member of Team USA and went on to become the 2025 U.S. senior all-around champion . More recently, she had to withdraw from th

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